Population figures
Total country population
61,020,221
Forcibly displaced population
Refugees (under UNHCR's mandate):
68,999
Asylum-seekers:
94,379
IDPs (of concern to UNHCR):
0
Other people in need of international protection:
0
Other
Statelessness persons
0
Host community
0
Others of concern to UNHCR
0
Country context
South Africa is located at the southern tip of the African continent, sharing borders with Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Eswatini and Lesotho, and bordered by the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. The country hosts a diverse population of refugees and asylum seekers, primarily originating from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, and Burundi. Refugees and asylum seekers are predominantly settled in urban centers such as Johannesburg, Cape Town and Pretoria, where they live integrated with host communities, as South Africa does not operate formal refugee camps.
South Africa has a comprehensive legal framework for refugee protection. The Refugees Act (Act No. 130 of 1998) gives domestic effect to the 1951 Convention and its 1967 Protocol, along with the 1969 OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa. Amendments introduced in 2008, 2011 and 2017 modified the Refugees Act framework, revising eligibility criteria, and introducing additional requirements, including reporting obligations at points of entry. While South Africa has historically maintained a generous refugee policy, the protection space faces challenges. Growing anti-foreigner sentiment has contributed to xenophobic violence and discrimination against foreign nationals, including refugees and asylum seekers.
...South Africa has committed to promoting civil registration and documentation for both nationals and refugees, resolving the refugee status determination backlog, and supporting durable solutions. The Government has made strides in strengthening the refugee status determination process. An independent Refugee Appeals Authority was established in 2020 to enhance procedural standards through the review of negative asylum decisions. Furthermore, the Government has accelerated efforts to address pending appeal asylum applications through the Appeals Backlog Project launched in 2021 in collaboration with UNHCR. The project aims to improve asylum capacity and the decision-making process, with concrete results observed so far.
South Africa’s geographic position makes it a key destination along mixed migration routes, including the Southern Route (from the Horn, East Africa, and Great Lakes regions) and the West Indian Ocean Route (to Mayotte via Comoros). Refugees and migrants moving along these routes often face significant protection risks, including gender-based violence, trafficking, and exploitation. Unaccompanied and separated children are particularly vulnerable.
Access to birth registration remains a significant challenge for both undocumented foreign nationals and undocumented South Africans. Although the Constitution and Citizenship Act include provisions to protect the right to nationality at birth, the country has not acceded to the 1954 or 1961 Statelessness Conventions and lacks a dedicated statelessness determination procedure. However, South Africa has taken a positive step by launching and finalizing a study on statelessness in early 2025, signaling increased attention to this issue.
Show more
